


Identity Theft

by khudgens91



Category: Sanctuary (TV)
Genre: F/M, Oral Sex
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-08-15
Updated: 2015-02-25
Packaged: 2017-12-23 14:32:09
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 12,254
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/927620
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/khudgens91/pseuds/khudgens91
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Something is causing Helen, John, and Nikola's consciousness' to continually swap bodies. The result is an even deeper understanding of the people they thought they knew.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

The first thing he registered as he slowly came back to the conscious world was pleasure. His sleep addled mind couldn't pinpoint the source, but that seemed irrelevant at the moment. He kept his eyes closed, hoping to drift back off into whatever pleasant dreams this was originating out of. But no, the further into wakefulness he travelled the more the pleasure rose. He could hear heavy breathing, possibly his own, and there was a strange slurping sound that he couldn't place.

  
There was a warmth, a wet warmth, wrapped around him. It was pulling and tugging and caressing him in the most desirable of ways. As his eyes fluttered open, he immediately saw a mass of brown curls. Lifting his head slightly he confirmed what he hadn't dare hope, the curls belonged to his beloved Helen. Her luscious lips were wrapped around his manhood, her tongue working him expertly. As their gazes locked, she smiled, her lips curling around his throbbing erection. The picture she presented nearly made him come on the spot, but she seemed to sense that and grasped the base of his shaft quickly, preventing him from coming.

  
"Uh uh uh," she tutted. "Not yet, love. I'm not done with you."

  
His heart hammered in his chest as she moved over him and then impaled herself on him. He watched her face as she sighed happily, eyes fluttering shut in pleasure. She rotated her hips in a small circle and they both moaned. She was hot and tight around him, muscles contracting in a tantalizing fashion. Without thinking, he surged up in her, making her gasp and fall forward, only just catching herself with her hands braced on his chest. The new position left her lips mere inches from his and, just as he'd hoped, she tilted her head up to kiss him. Her lips were soft and molded perfectly with his, they moved against each other with a passion. She was an exceptional kisser, but, then again, he couldn't think of any area she didn't excel in. Not that he was capable of much higher brain function at the moment. Helen Magnus could make a man forget his own name just with a kiss. And what she was doing at the moment, well it was enough to turn his brain to mush.  
Deftly he flipped them, wanting to taste her again. When he removed himself from her, she gave a mewl of protest. He applied the briefest amount of pressure to her knees and she instantly widened them for him. She was gorgeous, spread out before him, her arousal dripping out of her. He dipped his head, burying his face between her legs. Pausing, he took a deep breath, inhaling the heady scent of her, trying to commit it to memory once again. Slowly he slid his tongue across the length of her, feeling her shudder.

  
"Nikola!" Helen whined.

  
At that he pulled away from her, white hot anger bubbling up inside him.

  
"What did you just say?" He all but growled.

  
Sitting up on her elbows, her chest still flushed and heaving, Helen looked at him sternly.

  
"Don't make me beg. I'm so bloody close!"

  
"How dare you say his name while I'm pleasuring you!" He bellowed. "Have you been thinking about him this whole time?"

  
Helen scowled at him, frustrated at having been left hanging and his sudden mood swing.

  
"How long have you been sleeping with him, Helen? How many nights has he tainting your bed with his presence?" He was yelling now, hands balled into fists.

  
"Niko, you're scaring me. What's going on?"

  
"I'm not your precious pet vampire!"

  
"Who else..." Her voice trailed off as realization donned on her. "John?"

  
Helen's eyes were wide with a mixture of shock and fright. Her wits finally returning to her, she scrambled off the bed, dragging the bed sheet with her to wrap around her naked body.

  
"Feeling suddenly shy, Helen?" John chuckled darkly.

  
"I'm not sure what's going on, but I think you should leave...whoever you are." She told him firmly.

  
"As the lady wishes," he said, taking his time climbing out of her bed.

  
She was moving about the room, gathering the clothes strewn haphazardly across the floor. She threw the bundle at him and he caught it easily. There was a full length mirror across the room that drew his attention. Walking towards it, he stared at the reflection looking back at him. He touched his cheek, watching as the image of Nikola Tesla did the same in the mirror.

  
"Tesla" John growled between clenched teeth.

  
He dropped the wad of clothes in his arms, reaching instead for a robe slung across the back of a chair on his way out. Helen saw the murder in his eyes and was suddenly terrified. Without thinking, she rushed after him, still wrapped in nothing but her bed sheets. By some miracle she made it to the door before he did, effectively blocking his path.

  
"Move aside, Helen."

  
"No," she replied stubbornly, her chin jutting out in defiance. "I won't let you do anything rash. We need to figure out what's going on."

  
"If you won't move, I'll just let myself out," he told her flippantly.

  
He tried to teleport, but found himself strangely grounded, unable to budge. She watched him closely, a mixture of curiosity and triumph on her face.

  
"You can't teleport out of here, John. You're in Nikola's body and he doesn't possess that particular ability."

  
"What's that bastard done to me?" John bellowed, the fury and hatred bursting out of him.

  
"Easy, John," Helen said, trying to calm him down. "We'll figure this out."

  
She was glancing down at his hands cautiously. Following her line of sight, he saw the long dark talons extending from his fingertips. He was so surprised that his anger was momentarily forgotten and almost immediately the talons retracted.

  
"Interesting," he mumbled to himself.

  
He concentrated, letting his anger expand slowly, feeling his face shift and his talons grow.

"Now let's both just get dressed and we'll start getting to the bottom of this. I'm sure there's a reasonable explanation," Helen said absently, watching him with just as much fascination as he felt.

  
Now that he was calmer, he took careful stock of his body, noting all the differences. All his senses felt heightened tenfold. His sight was crisper, his hearing sharper, but most astonishing was his increased sense of smell. He could smell the arousal still clinging to Helen, the scent of her earlier couplings with Nikola, and a strange scent he couldn't place. He took a step closer to her, sniffing the air.

  
"John, what are you doing?" she asked nervously, backing up against the door.

  
"I can smell you," he told her in a low voice.

  
"W-what?"

  
He had her pinned to the door now, Nikola's lithe frame not quite managing his normal ability to loom over her. She put her hand on his chest to stop him from coming any closer, the other still holding the sheet tightly to her naked body. He growled, grabbing her wrist and slamming it against the door so hard she cried out. He hadn't meant to hurt her, but he hadn't expected to be able to move so fast and with such strength either. The tantalizing scent he was chasing grew stronger the closer he got to her. Leaning down, he pressed his nose to her neck and inhaled sharply. He could hear her blood hammering through her veins, her heart thumping wildly. He could even see her pulse point throbbing. He ran his nose across it, and then licked the skin, needing to taste it. His mouth watered and he realized that the smell was Helen's blood. He wanted to sink his teeth in her and take his fill. She smelt more appealing than anything he could ever remember. Is this how Nikola felt all the time? Had the careless vampire simply been forgetting to take his medication again? Surely he didn't constantly fight this overwhelming desire for blood? He hadn't realized he had changed once again, the vampire in him lurching out unrestrained.

  
"John," Helen tried to sound calm, but all his enhanced senses registered her fear. "John, listen to me. You don't want to do this. Just take a step back. You're not used to the blood lust. I can get you some more medication that will help with the craving."

  
"I don't want medication," he hissed. "I want you." He bared his frighteningly sharp teeth at her and she flinched.

  
There was a zap behind him, but he didn't turn to investigate. He would know that sound anywhere. His mind registered the new scent in the air and he hissed again.

  
"Nikola!" Helen cried.

  
There was another zap and then a hand was on his shoulder, pulling him away from Helen.

  
"Didn't take you long, old boy," John said, his eyes running up and down the all too familiar body now standing between him and Helen.

  
"Yes, well, your particular ability isn't difficult to master," Nikola taunted. "How are you faring with mine?"

  
"Care to have a go?"

  
"Gentlemen!" Helen snapped. "Now is not the time for arguing. We need to figure out what the hell is going on."

  
"Seems as though our consciousness' have somehow been transferred," Nikola stated casually.

  
"Yes, I got that far. Thank you, Nikola," Helen snapped. "Perhaps we should focus on the how?"

  
Just then the door burst open. Helen had relaxed enough that the move sent her sprawling to the floor as Henry, Will, and Kate came crashing into the room, stunners in hand.

  
"Magnus, what the hell is going on here?" Will asked, panicky.

  
"Yeah, Doc, I got some weird call from Druitt saying to lower the EM shield. He was giving me all of Tesla's security codes and sounded really strange over the phone. He said it was an emergency so I went ahead and lowered them. I hope that was ok."

  
"Perfectly," Helen grunted, getting up off the ground, sheets in tow. "Thank you. Good job, Henry."

  
"So you going to explain yourself, baldy?" Kate asked, pointing her stunner at who she thought was Druitt.

  
"Nikola and John's consciousnesses have somehow gotten transferred," Helen explained.

  
"That's so freaky Friday," Kate breathed, glancing between the two men.

  
"Why is Tesla in the bath robe I got you for mother's day a few years back?" Henry asked, finally registering the scene around him. "And why are you wrapped up in your-"

  
"Think about it, Hank," Kate sighed, rolling her eyes.

  
"Oh...gross!" Henry exclaimed, closing his eyes as if to ward off the sudden onslaught of information.

  
"Will, you and Kate take John down to the infirmary and get him an extra dose of Nikola's medication. Henry, I want you down in the lab. I want to know if there were any weird energy fluctuations during the night or early this morning. Anything that could give us a clue as to what happened and how we can reverse the effects," she was obviously trying to sound as commanding as possible, an effect that was greatly diminished by the fact that she was naked, hair thoroughly mussed, and wrapped in a sheet.

  
Her team seemed to take it all in stride though, everyone breaking up to go about their assigned tasks. John went along willingly, wanting to do whatever he could to quell this overwhelming bloodlust. He truly hadn't wanted to hurt Helen, but it had just washed over him and he had been completely helpless. Unfortunately it was a feeling he knew well. Absently he thought about how Nikola was coping with his own form of bloodlust. Would he succumb to the madness just as John had or would his constant staving off of his vampiric baser desires give him an advantage over the energy beings cravings? Would he unwittingly harm Helen, just as he had almost done? Obviously, the sooner they got back to their own bodies the better.

 


	2. Chapter 2

Nikola was furious. He couldn't stand the fact that John had woken up in bed with Helen. This thing between them was still fairly new and up until this point had remained a secret. Count on dear old Johnny to ruin everything. Montage John Druitt had been an almost constant deterrent in his relationship with Helen for over a century. It seemed as though every time he got close to Helen, John would magically appear. The man's timing was atrocious. 

"Dude, would you stop with the pacing already?" Henry griped. 

Nikola was supposed to be helping him search for any energy fluctuation or power spikes that could give them a clue as to what had caused them to swap bodies. As it turned out, Henry was doing all the work and he was seething. 

"You could help me, you know?" Henry continued to grumble. 

He didn't move to help him, but he did stop pacing. Rolling his eyes, Henry went back to work, leaving Nikola to his own devices. 

His mind was a whirlwind of thoughts and emotions. The last memory he had was of Helen curling up against his chest after making love to him. When he opened his eyes next, he was in a shabby hotel room with no recollection of how he'd gotten there. It hadn't taken him long to put the pieces together, especially after passing a mirror. Trying to get Huey, Dewy, and Screwy to disable the EM shields so that he could get inside had been a headache, but in the end he'd managed to convince them. After that it was just a matter of focusing on where he wanted to go, which had been Helen's bedroom. 

Helen hadn't wanted to talk after John and the children had left. She'd ushered him off to assist Henry while she cleaned up. He would have rather followed her into the shower. She'd looked adorable wrapped up in that bed sheet. Naked Helen was extremely hard to resist. 

She'd agreed to come find him after she'd cleaned up. Normally, he would have made some kind of offer to help her, but he'd refrained. Helen would have shot him down anyways. Being in John's body made things more complicated. It didn't change how he felt about her, but it might change how she felt about him.

He could imagine her in the shower right now, water running over her curves and across her smooth skin. If he was with her, he'd run his hands over every inch of her, all in the name of getting her clean of course. What was even better was when Helen returned the favor. Her soft, skilled hands caressing the contours of his body. Nikola sucked in a deep breath, closing his eyes and trying to reign in his errant thoughts. 

The sudden feel of water rushing over him made his eyes snap open in shock. He didn't have time to process what had happened before he was shoved against something hard, something else pressing against his throat and cutting off his air. Blinking the water out of his eyes, he saw Helen's face inches from his. 

"ljubav," Nikola choked out. 

The endearment startled her. She blinked at him a few times and then her eyes widened in shock. She jerked away from him, allowing him to breath again. One second he was in the shower, the next he was back in Henry's lab spluttering and wheezing. 

"Dude!" Henry yelped. "Where the hell did you go?"

Nikola didn't answer, still trying to catch his breath. Henry took in his appearance, the wet clothes plastered to his tall frame and the puddle of water that was pooling around his feet. 

"You're getting water everywhere!" Henry complained, running off to get something to clean up the mess. 

He shook his head, sending water droplets splattering everywhere. That certainly was not what he'd been fantasizing about. Trying to strangle him wasn't what he wanted Helen to be doing to him in the shower. He wasn't even sure exactly how he'd gotten in there to begin with. Obviously he'd teleported, but he hadn't been trying to, it just sort of happened. He'd have to be more careful in the future. Apparently this teleporting business was a little more tricky than he'd originally thought.   
*********************************************************************************************  
Helen stepped out of the shower, reaching for a towel. It had been a terrible morning, to say the least. First she'd found out that John and Nikola had swapped bodies, while in the middle of fucking who she thought was Nikola. Now she'd nearly strangled Nikola, who she thought was John. 

She had been so wrapped up in her own thoughts that she'd acted on pure instinct. Her brain didn't have time to register that it was actually Nikola in John's body before she had her arm across his throat. His use of a native Serbian endearment had jolted her memory. Then he was gone before she had time to apologize. 

This was all going to get confusing fast. What could possibly have caused the two of them to accidentally swap bodies? Technically they didn't know for sure that it was an accident, but that's what she was going with until they proved otherwise. She knew that John and Nikola would never do it on purpose, the two hated each other. 

The important thing right now was to figure out the how, the why could wait for the moment. Hopefully Henry had found something useful, anything would be better than nothing. But first she needed to apologize to Nikola. 

She found him in her office, sipping at a glass of scotch. She didn't have the energy or the heart to berate him on drinking her good scotch so she just let it be. In fact, she found that she rather needed a drink herself. But first thing in the morning was a little early so she refrained, sure that she'd end up finishing a glass or two before the day was over.

"Nikola, I am sorry about earlier," Helen said quietly, sitting down beside him on the little love seat. 

Nikola took another sip of scotch and smiled weakly at her. 

"S'ok."

"I was thinking and you startled me. I saw John and I just..."

"No harm done," Nikola assured her. "Though I was mightily disappointed that I didn't even really get to see you naked. You always look so splendid in the shower."

Helen sighed, rolling her eyes. 

"I thought I had told you to go help Henry," she reprimanded lightly, teasing him a bit. 

"I was!" Nikola tried to defend. 

"And yet you ended up in my shower?"

Helen raised an eyebrow at him. 

"I was in Henry's lab...and then I was in your shower."

"I see."

"Don't be mad at me. It was an accident, I swear."

"I'm not mad," Helen sighed, already exhausted by the day's events. "You aren't used to John's teleporting abilities. You were obviously thinking of me in the shower and it caused you to teleport there." 

Nikola smiled sheepishly at her, busted. She wasn't really surprised, the man had dirty thoughts about her all the time. It was both flattering and annoying. Right now it was more annoying. 

"It will take getting used to, just like your vampirism did," Helen told him calmly. "John used to pop in on me by accident all the time in the beginning."

She caught the sour look on his face.

"Oh, don't look at me like that," she huffed. "You all struggled back then and I was the one that had to deal with it all. John appearing in my room in the middle of the night, James with his headaches, Nigel coming in and out of visibility, and you were no picnic either Nikola Tesla. I still have the scars to prove it."

It was true, she had been there for all of them. Surely he wouldn't begrudge John that? She was the one that had held them all together back then, ever the fearless leader. But while she was taking care of them, who was taking care of her? The effects of the source blood didn't begin to appear in her until years later, but her life was just as changed as the rest of them if only for the fact that she helped all of them through their own transformations. 

"Come on, we need to start getting to the bottom of all this," Helen said, standing up. 

Nikola finished the last of his scotch in one large gulp before rising to follow her. She'd have to remember to tell him to take it easy. John didn't have the same immunity to alcohol that Nikola did. As long as he was in John's body, he would suffer the same effects the rest of them did when drinking in excess. That was something he wasn't going to like.


	3. Chapter 3

They had made their way down to the infirmary. It was vital that they figure out what had caused the body swap so that it could be reversed as soon as possible. Helen needed to run a few tests on both men, but they were giving John a little while to cool off. She didn’t want a repeat of this morning’s close call. Nikola had over a century’s worth of practice controlling the blood lust, John was experiencing the hunger for the first time. She’d ordered Will and Kate to administer an extra dose of Nikola’s medication just to be on the safe side. In the mean time she could examine Nikola.

Nikola sat on the infirmary bed, John's hulking form taking up most of the small space. It felt odd having him in here, pulling forth old memories. John had been her very first patient, in those early days when he was fighting the demon inside him. She had loved him so much back then. She knew that the man sitting in front of her was really Nikola, her Niko, but her mind was having trouble looking past John's body.

_Helen prepared the needle to draw yet another sample of John's altered blood.  They'd taken to weekly blood samples in an attempt to monitor and track any changes. Anything that would explain the blackouts and violence. They were happening much more frequently now, Helen waking to find John covered in blood next to her in bed. What used to be gentle caresses from the man she loved were slowing turning darker, scaring Helen just a bit. His mood swings were becoming more extreme as well._

_So far they were the only two that knew of John's condition, but it was getting difficult to hide it from the others, especially James. Dr. Watson was entirely too perceptive for his own good. Helen could tell he saw the minute shift in her and John's relationship; the added tension in Helen's shoulder, the slight flinch when he touched her, the long sleeved gowns or high gloves she wore to cover John's marks on her._

"Your arm please," Helen said, watching as Nikola rolled his sleeve up to accommodate her.

"It makes me sick to think that he saw you naked," Nikola grumbled.

"He saw much more than that," Helen said solemnly, not exactly happy with the morning’s events either.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

_"I can't believe he kissed you," John said indignantly._

_"It was just an innocent kiss between friends, John," Helen tried to sooth. "We got caught under the mistletoe. Honestly, it was no big deal."_

_"He could have kissed you on the cheek, like a gentlemen. He didn't have to kiss you on the mouth."_

_"Jealousy doesn't suit you."_

_"I'm hardly jealous of Tesla," John sneered. "I simply don't want him enjoying your favor."_

"I may have been...engaging in rather amorous activities before I realized he wasn't you."

"What sort of amorous activities?" Nikola asked suspiciously.

"What's your favorite way to be woken up?"

"No! You weren't!" Nikola stammered, the color draining from his face.

"I thought he was you," she defended.

"Did you let him...?"

"I thought he was you," she repeated.

Nikola groaned, covering his face with his hands. It was such a Nikola gesture, not something John would have ever done. It was one more reminder that the man in front of her wasn't who he appeared to be.

_“Nikola is only a friend, John," Helen defended for the umpteenth time._

_John was becoming increasingly jealous lately. It frustrated her to no end. She had never given him a reason to question her fidelity. Unlike himself. Helen knew all about the prostitutes he still visited. It was such a double standard, John thinking he had the right to bed other women but flying into a rage when she shared an innocent kiss with a friend._

"Did you...did he..." Nikola tried to ask.

"We didn’t get a chance to finish.”

"Good," Nikola said with a sigh.

Helen tried not to snort. Nikola was such a typical man, only concerned with her needs so long as it was him fulfilling them. He didn’t even think about the fact that she’d been pushed right to the verge of orgasm and then denied. All he could focus on was he hadn’t been the one with her at the time.

_“I don’t want anyone else knowing what your mouth tastes like,” John whispered into her ear. “Or how many adorable freckles hide under all these layers of clothing. Or how it feels to be inside you.”_

_Helen shivered._

_"I want to be the only one enjoying your body," John whispered, pulling her close._

"I don't like the idea of you pleasuring another man or any man other than me pleasuring you," Nikola confused sourly, wrinkling his nose to indicate his disgust at the idea.

"You do realize that technically it was your body."

"Technically," Nikola conceded reluctantly. "But it wasn't really me."

"It tasted like you," Helen said with a coy smile, purposefully teasing him. "And it felt like you."

"But he didn't make you come, even with my superior equipment."

"I didn't come, no," Helen said solemnly.

"I could fix that for you," Nikola offered, gently removing the now full syringe of blood from Helen’s fingers.

_John took the vial of blood from her, placing it carefully on the table next to the bed._

_“You look lovely tonight, Helen,” John complimented, pressing his lips against her neck._

_This close to him, Helen could smell the heady scent of his cologne. She’d bought it for him last Christmas and it had become his signature cologne. He always smelt so good, it made her dizzy._

_How many nights had she buried her face in his neck, inhaling his familiar smell as he brought them both to orgasm? Sometimes just a whiff of John’s cologne was all it took to make her wet. She both loved and hated the control this man had over her body._

Nikola leaned in, the smell of John’s cologne wafted off of him and she breathed it in greedily. Over a hundred years and John still smelled the same. Her body reacted without her permission, responded the way it always had to John.

Her desire from earlier returned. She felt the overwhelming need to kiss him, to see if he tasted the same as she remembered. It was irrational. She should not want to kiss John. She might could justify it, saying she was really kissing Nikola just in John’s body. But she knew she would be lying to herself. She had spent many lonely nights thinking about John and this was just an excuse to fulfill some secret desire she still harbored for the man. That didn’t seem to stop her though. As her tongue ventured into his willing mouth, Helen was both relieved and dismayed to discover that he did in fact taste the same, better even.

_Helen moaned as his lips took her own, the spicy taste of him filling her mouth as his tongue tangled with her’s. She had kissed a few men before John, but none had been like this. None could make her body ache so much just from a kiss._

_She could spend hours kissing him, had in the beginning before taking him to her bed. Sometimes she wanted to drag him away and snog him silly like they used to. John used to enjoy kissing her just for the sake of kissing. Now it seemed he thought it only a means to an end. The only time he kissed her like this was when he wanted it to go somewhere. Helen always tried to drag it out as long as possible, keep his lips own her’s just a few seconds more._

It was odd and unsettling, kissing Nikola in John’s body. He tasted like John, but the kiss was all Nikola. The twist of the tongue was somehow uniquely his. She couldn’t say she’d ever kissed someone while they occupied a different body, but it was definitely an unusual experience.

She’d forgotten how broad John’s chest was, but was quickly reminded as she pressed against him. He had always made her feel so small and delicate. Nikola’s body was much more lean and wiry.

She loved Nikola’s body, but it was just different than John’s. Whether she wanted to or not, Helen couldn’t help compare everyone to John. He had been her first and her experiences with him had shaped her future sex life. Helen enjoyed the press of Nikola’s lean body against her’s, but he just didn’t have the same effect John had. No one did.

_Helen melted into him, never able to resist John for long. Her body fit so perfectly against his, enveloping her in a strong embrace. He was so broad and tall, he dwarfed her. But she had never felt unsafe, quite the opposite actually, at least until recently._

_She loved to feel John’s heavy weight atop her, pressing into her from every angle. She enjoyed the strength in his chest, bracing against it as she rode him. His strong arms circling her tiny waist as they slept, fending off her nightmares, were such a comfort. John Druitt’s body was beautiful to her, in everyway._

Just as much as her body remembered all the pleasure John’s had given her, it also remembered the pain. The bruises from his too tight grip, the sting of his hand across her cheek, the burn as he penetrated her before she was ready; it all came rushing back to her.

It had always amazed and frightened her, the duality of his actions and her responses. He was the one that had shown her there was a fine line between pain and pleasure. Eventually he had crossed that line one too many times.

_John’s hands gripped her arms with bruising strength, holding her in place when she tried to pull away to say they shouldn’t do this here. She would have suggested they find someplace more private, some place where they wouldn’t be interrupted or caught. But he never gave her the chance._

_He continued his assault on her. His teeth bit a little too harshly against her neck and she knew there would be a mark she would have to cover up. She continued to try to fight him, but it didn’t do much good. It never did._

_“John, please don’t,” Helen tried to plead._ “Nikola, I can’t,” Helen blurted, backing away from him

“Why not? What’s wrong?” John’s deep bass voice sounded in her ear, making her shudder.

He tried to reach for her, but she pushed his hands away. She didn’t want those hands on her, there were too many memories associated with those hands. She wanted Nikola. Nikola in his own body. His arms around her had always comforted her, even back at Oxford in the midst of John’s madness. Helen had often sought out Nikola when she was upset, even though he had only been a friend to her back then. Now she just wanted those wiry arms to wrap around her and drowned out the memory of John’s hands on her body.

_“Helen?” Nikola’s voice called from up the stairs that led to the main floor of her father’s estate._

_John growled, hands tightening even more, causing Helen to wince._

_“Be quite and maybe he will go away,” John whispered._

_Helen didn’t want Nikola to go away, she wanted him to come down and rescue her. But she was too afraid of what John would do if she disobeyed him and called out to Nikola._

“I do believe the medication has helped quite a bit,” John said as he entered the room.

Nikola glared at John for interrupting.

Helen was grateful for the distraction. She didn’t want to explain to Nikola the jumble of emotions she was feeling. She didn’t know if she understood them herself even.         

_Footsteps echoed off the stone floor, getting closer. The interruption forced John’s hands off her, which Helen was grateful for. Quickly, she pulled herself together, smoothing over the wrinkled material of her dress and plastering a fake smile on her face._

_It wasn’t the first time they’d been caught by Nikola, or nearly caught as it were, but for once she was glad for the vampire’s terrible sense of timing._

“I do hope I wasn’t interrupting anything,” John said without a hint of remorse.

“Not at all,” Helen assured, smiling. “I was just about to run tests on Nikola’s blood sample. I need one from you as well.”

“Of course,” John nodded. “Whatever you need.”

Helen suppressed a sigh. What she needed was the two of them to be in the proper bodies. Unfortunately, they had no way of making that happen as of yet. And no way of knowing how long before they would get the answers they were looking for.


	4. Chapter 4

The blood tests showed nothing out of the ordinary. MRIs, CTs, and pet scans also revealed nothing. For all extents and purposes both men were perfectly healthy. Except for the fact that they were in the wrong bodies. 

Nikola's medication seemed to be helping John, who hadn't tried to bite anyone again thus far. She'd begun to take for granted Nikola's staunch control. She would occasionally point a gun at him as a warning if it looked like he was slipping, but she hadn't truly been afraid that he'd bite her in a great many years. That first morning with John, she had feared for her life. The possibility that he would lose control and could drain her in mere minutes had been a stark reminder as to what Sanguine Vampiris was capable of. 

Aside from the surprise visit she'd receive in the shower, Nikola seemed to be handling John's abilities well. He hadn't mysteriously appeared anywhere he wasn't supposed to at least. That was a start. She was more concerned about the madness that had quickly taken over John's mind after the injection of the source blood. Would Nikola suffer the same fate now that he was in John's body?

"Tell me you found something, Henry," Helen said as soon as he joined them in her office. 

"Sorry Doc," Henry said with a shake of his head. 

"Will?" Helen turned to her young protege. 

"No record of anything like this in the Sanctuary data base."

"I searched my father's personal journals as well, but didn't find anything."

"So basically we aren't any closer to an explanation than we were a few days ago," Nikola groused. 

"Patience, old friend," John said. 

"Don't patronize me," Nikola snapped back. 

"Druitt's right," Will put in. "It doesn't do any good to panic."

"I'm hardly panicking," he sniffed. 

"Could have fooled me, Vlad," Kate said dryly. 

"We still have plenty of time to figure this out," Helen interrupted. "So far we haven't seen any ill effects of the swap. As long as that continues, we don't have cause to panic. In the mean time, I'm afraid, you'll both just have to make do." 

"I'm sure we'll find something," John said calmly. 

"Did anyone find anything useful?"

Silence greeted her question. She'd take that as a no. Helen tried not to sigh.

"We'll keep looking," Will assured, catching on to her disappointment. 

Helen supposed she didn't have any right to be disappointed, she wasn't the one that had woken up in a different body. John didn't seem concerned in the least, but he had always been fairly reserved in his emotions. At least before he'd gone mad. Nikola, on the other hand, had always worn his emotions on his sleeve. 

John sat in the arm chair furthest from their little group, quietly observing the on going conversation and injecting his own comments when he felt the need. For the most part he kept silent. She caught him watching her several times, making her even more anxious. It was no secret that John still carried a torch for her. 

Nikola was watching her too, concern written all over John's handsome face. He was no doubt thinking about what happened down in the infirmary. They hadn't had a chance to talk privately since then, she'd been avoiding him. She wasn't exactly sure what she was going to say. It wasn't a conversation she was looking forward to and her avoidance was probably only making it worse. 

She loved Nikola, but she still loved John. Helen held the secret belief that some part of her would always love John. She had gotten fairly good at locking away her feelings towards him, keeping them hidden and ignored deep inside herself. But now they were fighting back, demanding to be addressed and felt. 

Everything was so confusing, so unknown. They had no idea what they were dealing with or how long it would last. Did the madness that had overtaken John so long ago reside in his mind and therefore would be transferred into Nikola's body? That was a frightening thought. A homicidal vampire was exactly what they needed right now. 

On the flip side, would Nikola begin to go mad now that he was in John's body? If the evil was confined to his physical form, then she would lose Nikola while John would return to his old self. Did she want the old John back though? More importantly, and surely the question he was asking himself, would they be able to have what they once had? Could they go back to the way things had been? 

They had no way of knowing how long they would be stuck this way. What if it turned out to be permanent? She couldn't think that way, she needed to stay positive. They would find a way to reverse whatever it was that had happened to them. They had to. 

"Helen?" 

She jumped, not realizing that everyone had left. Nikola and John were the only two now in the room with her. Both men looked at her with concern. She wanted to squirm under their combined staring. 

"Where did the others go?" she asked, shaking her head to clear it.

"We sent them away," John told her. 

He'd moved from his place in the armchair, coming closer to her until both men hovered over her. 

"Oh," she said quietly. 

"Are you alright, Helen?" Nikola asked, taking her hand. 

She tired not to jerk away from him, pulling her hand back gently instead. John's hand went to her knee, him squatting at her feet. She couldn't exactly move away from him subtly so she let it be. The jealousy in Nikola's eyes was clear. 

"Its just all very confusing," she confessed. 

"Don't worry, we'll figure it out," John assured. 

"You shouldn't be the one comforting me. You are the ones having to go through this. I should be comforting you."

"We are perfectly fine, Helen," Nikola said. 

"Perhaps we should leave her be," John suggested. "Let her get some work done. We can go help the others search for answers." 

"Yes, perhaps we should. Children do need constant supervision."

John squeezed her knee in reassurance, before rising to his feet. 

"After you," John said, gesturing toward the door. 

"Beauty before brains," Nikola quipped. 

"You do realize you're in my body," John responded evenly. 

"Damn," Nikola grumbled. 

Helen chuckled, shaking her head at the two men. Everything was a competition between the two of them. 

"We'll come check on you later," John told her before shutting the down after them .

Helen sighed, sinking back into the sofa. It had only been a few days and she was already exhausted by all this. Reluctantly, she moved to her desk, determined to get at least some work done today. 

A few hours later there was a soft knock at her office door. She called for them to enter, not looking up as she finished typing her report. When she was done, Helen found Nikola waiting for her. 

"What do you want, Nikola?" Helen sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. 

"John, remember?" the vampire told her with a small smile. 

"Right, sorry," Helen apologized quickly. "I'm still getting used to this."

"Aren't we all?" 

"I can't imagine what you must be going through," Helen confided, coming out from behind her desk to sit on one of the sofas. 

John followed her, sitting down beside her. 

"It isn't so bad," John assured. 

"Surely you hate being stuck in Nikola's body?" Helen goaded playfully. 

"Whereas he isn't near as handsome as I am, the clarity I have experienced has been astounding."

"How so?"

"For the first time in decades, I feel like myself again. I'm free of whatever was haunting me. Its absolutely liberating."

Helen's stomach dropped. What did that mean for Nikola?

"Don't worry, Helen," John continued, seeing the concern on her face. "I've been watching Nikola very carefully the last few days and he doesn't seem to be anything other than his usual annoying self." 

Helen was chewing on her lip, still worried about Nikola. If John was back to himself, than whatever had driven him mad was still in his body and Nikola was susceptible to it. She didn't want to see him suffer the same fate that John had all those years ago at Oxford. She hadn't been able to save him back then, but maybe this time she could save Nikola. 

"We'll continue to watch him," John assured, placing a hand on her leg. "I have a theory though. Would you like to hear it?"

"Of course," Helen smiled softly, pulling her attention back to the man before her. 

"It is clear that our minds are intact, only in the wrong bodies, correct?"

"Yes. The tests showed no abnormal brain activity in either of you."

"Exactly. My theory is that during whatever process took place, whatever demons haunted me were wiped clean." 

"I don't understand."

"Anything unnatural that clung to my consciousness would not have been transferred due to the very fact that it wasn't natural." 

Helen thought about it. She had witnessed first hand the change that John had under gone. There was nothing natural about what he'd become. It was such a far cry from the man she knew him to be. Could he be right? It seemed too good to be true that she'd get the old John without risking Nikola in the process. 

"I want to believe you, John," Helen said quietly. "But it sounds too good to be true."

"I suppose we'll just have to wait and see for ourselves."

She smiled tentatively at him, hoping his theory proved correct.


	5. Chapter 5

The next week turned up no more results. They kept hitting dead ends. It was becoming increasingly more frustrating. With each passing day Helen's emotions became more tangled and confusing. Nikola was slowly withdrawing, shutting her out. Whereas John was acting more like his old self with each passing day. 

He was attentive and caring, just like he used to be. She found herself seeking him out, strangely comforted by his presence. Nikola, on the other hand, made her increasingly more uneasy. He had stopped trying to touch her, something she had yet to decide if it was good or bad. He wasn't talking to her much either. She worried that she was slowly losing him, but she didn't know what to do to stop it. 

"You work entirely to hard, my love," John said, walking into the lab. 

She had been running tests on his and Nikola's most recent blood samples. Looking up from the microscope, Helen stretched her shoulders, working out the stiffness. 

"What time is it?" 

"After midnight."

"I didn't realize it was so late."

"You never do."

He was behind her now, laying a hand on her shoulder. She smiled up at him as he began to rub gentle circles on her back. It was something he used to do back at Oxford. How many nights had he wandered into her lab to coax her into coming out and going to bed? Of course, back then he could teleport then straight to her bedroom. Bribing her with sex had been a very effective method of making sure she didn't work too hard. 

"How many times do you think you had to come get me from the lab back at Oxford?" Helen asked fondly. 

"Too many to count," John chuckled. "But I always made it worth your while, if I remember correctly."

His voice had gone husky, the hand on her back changing from comforting to arousing. Helen sighed, leaning back into his hand before she could stop herself. A part of her wanted this, even if it was wrong. 

But it was wrong, she told herself sternly. Letting out a deep breath, Helen rose to her feet. She removed the slide from the microscope, intent on replacing it with another. 

John followed her to the table where she was preparing the next sample. Stepping up behind her, he put his hands on her hips and pressed himself against her back. 

"John," Helen whispered, her voice shaking slightly. 

"Do you know what I miss the most, Helen?" He asked, his breath tickling her cheek. 

"No."

"I miss holding you. The way you used to just melt in to me. Do you remember?"

"Yes," she whimpered, fighting the urge to do exactly that. 

"I never stopped loving you. Not in all these years," John continued, nuzzling against her neck. 

"John, we can't," she protested, but didn't push him off. "This is wrong."

"Why? Because I'm in Tesla's body?"

"Yes."

"What if we can't reverse it? What if we stay stuck like this? Will you go back to Tesla even though he's in my body? Will you deny me because I'm in his?"

"I-I don't know."

"Are looks that important to you, Helen? I always took you as the type of woman who was attracted to the person, not the body."

It was true, Helen rarely took someone to her bed simply because of their looks. She was more interested in their personalities, their character, their spirits. She wasn't a shallow person. She prided herself on being an equal opportunist lover; male or female, black or white, abnormal or human. 

"John, I-"

"Do you love him?" he interrupted. "Tesla."

"Yes," Helen whispered. 

"Do you still love me?"

"I don't think I ever stopped. Not really," she admitted. 

"I won't let you go again, Helen. Now that I'm back to myself, I will fight for you."

She turned in his arms, her hands coming up to cup his cheeks. Searching his eyes, she saw the sincerity of his words. Her heart twisted in her chest. How was she supposed to choose between these two men? She loved them both. 

"Please don't make me choose," Helen begged. 

John didn't respond, just leaned in to brush his lips chastely against her own. It was so tender, so gentle. Helen sighed, her eyes fluttering shut as he kissed her again. He didn't push to deepen his kisses, content to just feel her lips against his. But she found herself wanting more. 

He fought her at first, but eventually he yielded, opening his mouth to her questing tongue. Helen moaned, kissing him hungrily. She found it much the same as the kiss she'd shared with Nikola back in the infirmary. It tasted like Nikola, felt like Nikola beneath her hands and lips, but the kiss itself was purely John. 

She hadn't kissed him in over a century and it had been even longer than that since they'd kissed like this. In the end his kisses had been rushed, harsh, and demanding. This was sweet, slow, and gentle. He kissed her like he had in the beginning, consuming her completely until nothing else in the world existed except the two of them. 

John was the first to pull away, much to her surprise and displeasure. She wanted to follow him, pull him back to her and keep going. But she refrained. If he kissed her again she wouldn't be able to stop. She needed to get away from him, before she did something she would regret. 

Yet she was rooted to the spot. They were both breathing hard, staring into each other's eyes. She could feel the flush on her cheeks and her heart was hammering in her chest.

"I have to go," she whispered. 

"Of course," John said, bowing his head slightly before stepping away from her. 

Helen cleared her throat, running her hands across her skirt and over her hair. She was having trouble pulling herself together. She didn't want to leave, but it was the smart thing to do. 

She took one step towards the door and then everything around her began to tilt and spin uncontrollably. She staggered, disorientated. The sound of something heavy hitting the floor was the last thing she heard before she fell to the ground herself, everything going black.


	6. Chapter 6

Helen woke with a groan. Glass was cutting into her forearms and she was momentarily confused. Looking around, she saw...herself, laying in a crumpled heap a few feet away. What the hell was going on? Realization dawned on her quickly, making her gasp. 

Looking down at her arms, Helen saw the distinct long fingered hands of Nikola Tesla. Neatly trimmed and polished nails belying the razor sharp talons she knew could erupt from the tips of her fingers. Twisting her arms, she tried to get a better look at the stinging cuts she felt there. Glass was embedded in her skin. With a grimace, Helen pulled the shards free and then watched in awe as her flesh neatly sewed itself back together. There was a tingling sort of sensation that accompanied it, making her want to itch at the healed skin. 

Helen tried to remember what had happened. She had been leaving, but she'd heard a loud thud behind her before blacking out. Obviously, John had sent her blood samples crashing to the ground with him when he'd fallen. The glass she'd dug out was from the microscope slides she'd been studying. 

The thought of John, made Helen turn her attention back on the other person still unconscious in the room. It felt weird referring to the body as herself since she wasn't actually in it, but she had no way of knowing who it was until they woke up. Clearly, this was spreading out from just John and Nikola. 

Crawling across the floor, Helen made to examine the body. Whoever it was, they'd hit their head rather hard on the concrete floor of the lab. A small trickle of blood was beginning to run down the side of their face. The doctor in her took over and Helen gently parted the hair to get a better look. It wasn't deep, only superficial, but head wounds usually bled more than most. 

The air conditioning chose that moment to kick in, blowing the scent of the blood up into her face. Her nostrils flared, breathing deeply the intoxicating aroma. Helen tried to reign herself in, compose herself, but to no avail. 

As careful as she'd been, Helen had still managed to get some of the blood on her hands. Staring down at the red digits, her heart rate jumped. What would it hurt to just have a taste? She wasn't actually biting anyone, just cleaning the blood off her hands. She'd always been curious why Nikola craved her blood so much. Could she taste that good? 

Decision made, Helen brought her hands up to her face. Sniffing at them tentatively, her mouth began to salivate. Slowly, she ran her tongue over one red finger. Her taste buds seemed to explode and her eyes rolled back in her head. It was better than anything she'd ever tasted. She licked the remainder of her fingers, greedily lapping up the blood on them. 

When every finger was clean, Helen looked at her hands forlornly. That hadn't been very much at all. She want, no she needed, more. Maybe just one bite? It was technically her body after all, she gave herself permission. 

She felt the shift take over her. Nails growing into long talons, face twisting, teeth sharpening. It was exhilarating. A guttural snarl was ripped from her throat and she lunged at the body on the floor. The pale expanse of neck taunted her, just begging to be bitten. 

Her teeth sunk in effortlessly, cutting through the soft flesh like it was nothing. All it took was a little suction and then warm blood flooded her mouth. If the taste of blood on her fingers had been good, this was nirvana. Helen's entire body was alight with pleasure. She never wanted to stop. 

How did Nikola control himself all the time? Why wasn't he constantly at everyone's throats? Logically, she knew it was due to the serum she'd developed for him. But even with the medication, how could he willingly give up something this good? Suddenly she understood the longing in his eyes she'd seen all those year ago when the change first took him, the burning need he'd exhibited. She'd never held it against him the few times he'd bitten her in the beginning, but she'd never truly understood it either. She did now. Helen had a new found respect for her vampire, his rigorous self control was astounding. 

As it were, she didn't think she was going to be able to stop. She would drain this body and then move on to the next one. She would drink her fill, no one would stop her. The body beneath her moaned weakly, but Helen ignored it, continuing to feed. 

"Holy shit!" A voice cried from the doorway.

Hands were pulling at her shoulders, trying to get Helen off her prey. Snarling, she turned her attention to the person attacking her. Vaguely her mind registered that it was her friend, Kate, but the vampire in her didn't care. Here was another donor for her to take her fill of. This one was feisty, a challenge that she reveled in. It was a simple matter to have the young woman pinned to the wall, dripping red fangs snapping in her face. 

The girl went pale, suddenly holding very still. Helen could hear her blood pounding through her veins, see her pulse throbbing in her neck. She licked her lips, dipping her head to sink her teeth into the girl's neck. Her prey cried out then, jerking around to try to throw her off. But Helen held firm, her added strength giving her the advantage. 

"Will! Henry! Help me!!" the girl screamed at the top of her lungs. 

"Oh fuck!" a male voice sounded behind her. 

She heard the sound of a stunner firing just before she felt it hit square between her shoulders. Helen grunted, slumping into her prey. Her fangs retracted and she shook her head to try to clear it. Another shot made her growl in frustration. 

Shrugging off the shocked, Helen turned on whoever had shot her. Talons and fangs bared, she lunged for them. They managed to get off another two rapid fire shots, which hit her in the stomach, before she shoved them aside. Sprinting out of the lab, Helen rushed towards the nearest exit.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story was my 2013 NANOWRIMO fic. I won that year, but I never went back to edit it. Until now. As I'm re-reading it, I'm re-discovering how much I love this fic. So I thought it was high time I posted it for the rest of you to enjoy. Hopefully you'll like it as much as I do. And just a tip, if you bug me I'm more likely to post new chapters a lot quicker. If I know people are reading it, I'll want to give you more. ;)

"What do you mean he got away!?" Nikola roared.

"He attacked us!" Kate defended.

"I thought you were giving him extra doses of my medication."

"We were, but clearly it wasn't enough," Will chimed in.

Nikola was pacing across the infirmary. He was furious. Why would John suddenly turn on Helen? He'd been doing so well this last week. Perhaps it was because of the gash on her head? Nikola was all too familiar with what the scent of Helen's blood could do to him. He'd never figured out why, but she was the best blood he'd ever tasted and damn near irresistable. Years of practice were the only thing that kept him from sinking his teeth into her every chance he got.

But regardless, if he ever got his hands on that bastard he would hurt him. John had damn near killed Helen and he would pay for that. Glancing over at the still form laying in the hospital bed, Nikola's heart sank. Helen looked so pale, the angry teeth marks standing out brightly on the pale skin of her neck.

_Serves her right_ , the little voice inside his mind commented.

He'd been trying to ignore it all week, but it was getting stronger and stronger. It was becoming a battle not to give in to the terrible things it whispered in his head.

_She probably let him bite her. She probably enjoyed it. The little slut would bare her neck to anyone with a pair of fangs. Next she'll be parting her thighs._

Nikola grimaced at the thought.

"We need to find Druitt," Henry was saying.

"Any ideas where he would have gone?" Kate asked.

"I'd guess the closest whore house," Nikola quipped.

_We should offer to go find him. We could find a whore for ourselves. The pretty girls bleed wonderful shades of red._

"I'll stay here with Helen," Nikola offered. "Will, you and Henry try to find John."

"Who put you in charge, baldy?" Kate challenged.

"Do it!" Nikola snapped, glaring at the lot of them.

"Alright, we're going," Henry soothed. "Come on, Kate."

The girl made to protest but Henry pushed her out the door before she could get another word in .

Breathing a sigh of relief, Nikola sunk down into the chair next to Helen's bed. She'd lost alot of blood. The big hairy one had given her a transfusion, but he said it might take a little while for her to wake up.

_I bet there's a scalpel somewhere in here._

Nikola shook his head, trying to clear it.

_No one is around. She already gave blood to the half breed mongrel. You should get some too._

"Stop it!" Nikola snarled into the empty room.

Great, now he was talking to himself. Nikola took a deep breath, trying to calm down. He loved Helen, he didn't want to hurt her.

_What is it with the two of you and loving her? What's so special about this one? She's nothing more than a high class slut. She deserves to be punished._

Every time he was near her the voice would begin to pester him. He'd been avoiding her as much as possible. It was getting harder to ignore though. The mysterious voice seemed to have a power over him, it was a battle to fend off the impulses it was causing in him.

Nikola had always wondered why John had developed his habit of carving up women. He'd known John fancied the occasional whore back at Oxford, something that had made him sick considering the man had a woman like Helen sharing his bed. John had a dark side to him even before they had injected themselves with the source blood, but he'd gone mad after it was all said and done. Nikola had secretly theorized that, just as it had unlocked his latent vampire genes, it had augmented John's proficiency for violence.

Nikola had learned to control his bloodlust, but whatever plagued John was something different all together. He craved blood because that's what his people used to sustain themselves, it was a natural thing for him to feel. These burning desires that raged through him now were far from natural. It took pleasure in causing other people harm, especially women. It was a game for the little voice inside his head, a sick sort of sport.

Helen stirred, moaning. Nikola took her hand, leaning forward to brush her bangs off her forehead.

"Helen?" he asked tentatively.

"What happened?" Helen croaked.

"John attacked you. The bastard nearly drained you."

"That's not possible."

"Kate walked in on him feeding off you," Nikola told her adamently.

"No," Helen said stubbornly.

"No? What do you mean no?"

"Nikola, I *am* John."

"I-I don't understand."

"We were in the lab, she was just leaving when everything started spinning and I blacked out."

"So the person currently occupying my body...the person out hunting for more blood...is Helen?"

"It would appear that way," John said seriously, trying to sit up.

"Shit!" Nikola mumbled, trying to process what John was telling him.

Everything made more sense now. John at least had a century of fighting off the sadistic voice inside his head, which would have helped him fend off the bloodlust. But Helen, sweet pure hearted Helen, would have no experience suppressing such dark desires.

He could easily imagine what happened. Helen waking up first, seeing someone else injured, she would have rushed to help them. The sight and smell of blood would have overwhelmed her. From there things had quickly escalated.

"We have to stop her," Nikola breathed. "She'll hate herself if she kills someone."

Fumbling in his pocket, Nikola pulled out his cellphone. Of course, Huggybear didn't answer. Quickly he hung up and dialed Henry instead. Thankfully the younger man answered on the second ring.

"Henry!" Nikola cried. "You have to listen to me! John isn't in my body anymore, it's Helen."

"What the hell?" Henry exclaimed, shocked.

"No time to explain. Just try to stop her before she seriously hurts someone."

"Right, on it," Henry responded urgently before hanging up.

"I'm going to go look for her," Nikola announced.

He didn't wait for John to reply, vanishing before the other man could say anything.

He hadn't been gone more than an hour before his cellphone rang, Henry's name appearing on the screen, and Nikola rushed to answer it.

"Did you find her? Was she ok? Had she hurt anyone?"

The questions tumbled out of his mouth before he could stop them.

"She's in the infirmary. She's in pretty rough shape."

He didn't take the time to hang up, simply teleporting back into the infirmary. Helen had told Henry to keep the EM shields down until they got this fixed, she hadn't wanted him accidentally teleporting while it was still up and disintegrate himself.

When he arrived, he quickly took in the scene before him. His body was strapped to an infirmary bed, struggling and snarling wildly. It was disconcerting to see himself like that. Had he looked that way in the early days when his blood lust had nearly drove him mad?

"Did you give her more medication?" Nikola demanded.

"Of course we did," Will bit back.

"I want everyone out," he said loudly.

"Again, who put you in charge?" Kate groused.

"She'll calm down faster if there isn't anyone else in the room. She can smell our blood. She needs to be alone right now."

"Oh," Kate mumbled, blushing slightly.

"You heard him," the hairy one grunted. "Everyone out."

"Where's Druitt?" Henry asked.

"Put him in a private room."

"Good," Nikola commented. "We'll come check on her in a few hours. It should have worn off by then."

Everyone nodded their agreement, slowly filing out of the room. Nikola was the last to leave, glancing back at Helen's struggling figure and feeling sorry for her. He'd find her when her mind cleared and help her process what had happened. She was going to feel terrible about attacking her friends. He always had. Nikola just hoped to god they'd found her before she'd killed someone. He wasn't sure she'd forgive herself if she had.


	8. Chapter 8

After supper Nikola ventured back down to the infirmary. Enough time had passed that Helen should be reasonably in control of herself. Regardless, he was planning to keep her strapped down to be on the safe side. She wasn't going to like that one bit, but it was for her own safety as well as everyone else's.

She was deathly still when he walked in, the slow rise and fall of her chest the only movement she was making. He was a few feet away when her eyes snapped open.

"It happened again," she choked out, looking like her eyes were having trouble focusing.

"What happened again, Helen?" Nikola asked, concerned.

"Switched," the vampire gasped. "Go find her. I was in a private room, second one down."

"John?"

The other man nodded.

"Are you alright? You don't look so good."

"Dizzy," he explained. "I'll be fine. Go to her, she needs you."

Nikola nodded curtly, teleporting himself into the private room that John had specified. He got there just in time to see Helen attempting to get out of the hospital bed. She stood shakily for a few moments before her legs gave out.

Nikola was before her in a blink of the eye, catching her before she could hit the ground. She looked just as dizzy as John had. Maybe it was a symptom of the swap? They'd been asleep during the first switch so it would have been impossible to know. John had reported a spinning sensation before blacking out when he and Helen had switch earlier. It may be something worth making note of.

"Easy," Nikola told her gently. "I've got you."

"John?"

_She prefers him to you. Why do you even bother helping her. She isn't worth your time._

"No, ljubav, it's me."

"Niko," Helen sighed, clutching at him.

"Come on, let's get you to bed."

Nikola swept her up into his arms, reappearing a second later in her bedroom. Gently he placed her on the bed before beginning to strip her clothing. When she was down to only her panties, he followed suit and climbed in the bed beside her. She was trembling as he pulled her into his arms.

"I couldn't help myself, Nikola," Helen said quietly.

"I know, love," he assured, rubbing her back.

"There was just a little bit on my hands and I was curious. It tasted so good, I had to have more and then I couldn't stop."

"You weren't used to the bloodlust, Helen. It isn't your fault."

"But it is!" she protested. "I bit them. I fed off them."

"You lost control. Do you remember how many times I did in the beginning?"

"Yes," she whispered sullenly.

"It takes practice to gain control over it."

"But John hasn't bitten anyone. He's been a vampire for over a week. I was in your body for a few hours and I bit several people."

"He would have bitten you that first day, if I hadn't stopped him," Nikola protest. "You can't compare yourself to him."

"Why not? What's so different between us?"

Nikola wanted to tell her about the voice he'd been hearing, that had been telling him to do things. He hadn't known how to bring it up, this was the perfect lead in. But he didn't want to sound crazy. What if she didn't believe him? Would she lock him up in a padded cell?

"John has more practice controlling the urge to hurt people," Nikola said carefully. "You wouldn't hurt a fly. You've never had to fight such desires."

"I hurt them, Nikola. I could have killed them, would have killed them if I wasn't stopped."

"You weren't yourself, Helen. Your friends know that. They don't blame you."

"I blame me."

He'd known she would. Nikola held her tighter, trying to comfort her anyway he knew how. He still remembered the first time the bloodlust had taken over him. He'd bitten her, James, and Nigel. John had only escaped his fangs because he could teleport out of his grasp. Nikola had been so ashamed after. He'd wanted to banish himself, go far away so that he could never hurt his friends again, especially Helen.

She'd come to him that night, climbing in his bed and holding him as he shook and cried. She'd been so kind. The fact that Helen trusted him enough to be that close to him, even after he'd bitten her, had eased some of his guilt. She'd assured him they would get through this, they would find a way to help him, and he shouldn't be ashamed of what he was or what he'd done.

"How do you do it?" Helen asked after several minutes of silence.

"Do what?"

"Keep from biting everyone all the time."

"The medication you developed for me helps a great deal. The rest is just practice and will power."

"I never really understood how hard it was for you. I do now."

"I never wanted you to find out," Nikola told her sincerely, kissing the top of her head.

"You are a good man, Nikola Tesla," Helen told him, nuzzling his neck and pressing closer to him.

"You're just now figuring that out?" He asked with mock indignation.

He felt her chuckle against him, the small vibrations passing from her body into his own.

"I think I fell a little bit more in love with you today," she admitted softly, placing a tender kiss just below his ear.

"I don't think its possible for me to love you any more than I already do."

"Cheeky," she mumbled against his neck.

_She doesn't mean it. She's just saying that. The second you leave she'll go running to someone else, confessing to love them too. She's a liar!_

Helen was kissing up his jaw now, Nikola trying to focus on her instead of the voice in his head.

"Helen?" Nikola groaned.

"Mmm?" she hummed, kissing the corner of his mouth.

"I...we shouldn't. You need to rest. You lost alot of blood."

Helen pulled back, pouting at him. She was so adorable. He wanted to lean in and nip at her plump bottom lip. So he did. She responded instantly, kissing him fiercely.

"Rest Helen," Nikola told her sternly, reluctantly pushing her away from him.

She huffed loudly, but settled back into the pillows without further argument. He kissed her tenderly on the forehead, lingering just a moment longer than necessary. Helen smiled sweetly at him when he pulled back.

"Sleep, ljubav," Nikola whispered, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

He made to leave, pulling the covers off and climbing out of the bed. Helen sat bolt upright, eyes wide.

"Stay with me? Please, Niko?" She begged, reaching for him.

How could he say no to her? She was impossible to resist. With a sigh he crawled back in beside her. Helen sighed happily, settling against his chest. Her legs tangled with his and her head pillowed on his shoulder. Her slim fingers traced patterns against his chest, light as a feather. He felt her yawn and chuckled.

"S'not funny," Helen grumbled. "I wanted to stay awake with you."

"I'll be right here as you sleep. I'm not going anywhere."

"Promise?"

"Of course," he assured, tightening his arms around her.

"I feel like I'm losing you, Nikola," she confessed. "You've been so distant this week."

He didn't know what to say to that.

"All of this is very confusing," Nikola admitted.

"But why haven't you come to me?" Helen pressed. "We can get through this together. I don't understand why you're pushing me away."

"I wasn't sure you'd want to see me...not like this."

Nikola gestured down the length of the body that wasn't his. Helen laid her hand flat against his chest, right over his heart.

"I won't say this isn't hard for me too," she said slowly. "I have alot of bad memories associated with this body."

He'd guessed as much when she'd panicked slightly at his touch in the infirmary that morning. At first he'd given her space because he didn't want to elicit such memories, but then the voice had started to grow stronger and the urges to do her harm became more frequent. He wasn't entirely sure why whatever was inside him hated her so much. It seemed to react the most violently to her out of everyone. Not that it didn't whisper things about all of them.

"But I miss you," Helen continued. "I miss talking to you, laughing with you, even your stupid innuendos. I need you in my life, Nikola. No matter what that looks like. But we're going to figure this out and get things back to normal. I promise."

"I've never known you to go back on your promises."

Helen snuggled deeper into his embrace. He felt her begin to relax completely against him, her body giving in to the exhaustion he knew she felt. Nikola waited for her breathing to even out, planning to slip out of bed once she was truly asleep. But the longer he lay there the heavier his eyes became and soon he was following Helen into the land of dreams.


End file.
